


The invisible child

by eloquent_apollo



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Other, The invisible kid inspired fanfic, This is just me going what if the twins got to heal?, even if it isn't a lot, hints at Andrew's time with terrible foster parents, mentions of abuse, soft nerik I ain't gonna lie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:33:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23790862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eloquent_apollo/pseuds/eloquent_apollo
Summary: “You all know, don’t you, that if a child is frightened very often, they sometimes become invisible?”At age 16, shortly before his mother passes away in a car accident, Aaron Minyard turns invisible. He’s unsure on how to make it stop. He and his cousin Nicky have read countless of books just to find any answer but come up empty handed every time. Perhaps his strange twin brother knows the answer, though, because he sure acts like he does.A short story in which Aaron turns invisible and with the help of those who care, he slowly becomes visible again as he finds some sort of a family in the mess left behind by his mother.
Relationships: Aaron Minyard & Andrew Minyard, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Nicky Hemmick & Aaron Minyard & Andrew Minyard, Nicky Hemmick/Erik Klose
Comments: 7
Kudos: 64





	The invisible child

**Author's Note:**

> This is pretty much inspired by the short story "The Invisible Child" by Tove Jansson which is a moomin story hehe. A huge thanks to Imke for beta'ing this for me <3

Aaron and Andrew are twins. Nicky is just going to have to take his dead aunt’s words for it, because the only thing he can see of Aaron is a ribbon with a bell attached to it that Andrew tied around his neck so people know that he is somewhere there. Nicky can’t actually see what he looks like, but the ribbon looks small and Nicky worries he’s too skinny. He tries making him dinner, but Aaron doesn’t eat with them in the kitchen and instead goes to eat it in his room. Nicky goes to collect the dirty plate later in the night, but he doesn’t know for sure if he ate it or threw it away. For his own sake he’s going to pretend that he did.

Nicky had heard of children turning invisible at the hands of abusive adults before, had almost turned invisible himself back when he still lived with his parents, but he had never actually seen an invisible child before. Or well, not seen? It was weird. He had gone to google to look for answers on how to turn Aaron back to normal, but it seemed like no one wanted to talk about their invisible children turning visible and for a second Nicky panicked. What if they couldn’t turn visible ever again? What if Aaron stayed this way forever, what had happened to those other children? Do they waste away? Do they continue to disappear until they’re truly gone? It made Nicky so worried, he called Erik’s number. It’s around 4 AM in Germany when he calls, but Erik still answers on the second ring. Nicky temporarily forgets his worries about Aaron in favour over worrying about Erik.

“Isn’t it 4 AM for you? Why are you awake?”

“I set your ringtone as the loudest I could find, you woke me up babe. What’s wrong?”

“oh.. I- He’s invisible, Erik. Aaron is invisible..”

There is silence on the other end of the line, and he hears Erik shifting in bed and sitting up.

“He’s invisible? Like actually invisible?”

“Yeah, you can’t even see him. The only thing you can see about him is this ribbon with a bell attached to it, so you can hear where he is.” Nicky sighs

“Mh…. Nothing else? Not even his clothes?”

“I- no. I don’t know, I can’t see anything else about him that’s for sure. I don’t know what to do, there are no answers on google and I- what if he completely disappears? He doesn’t even speak to me…”

“He won’t, we’ll find a way to get him back. You know my grandmother has a book with homemade medicine recipes… Maybe she has something written down there on how to cure it? I’ll look in the attic at my parents’ house today, if you want me to?”

“You’d do that for me?”

“Of course.”

After that the call changes into goofy talk, they keep talking until it’s time for Erik to get up and start his day and Nicky falls asleep, his worries temporarily washed away by Erik. He falls asleep thinking about how happy he is to have a boyfriend that has helped him through so much in his life, but the idea of being invisible still lurks in the back of his mind. If only he remembered what had happened after his own feet started to slowly become transparent, but like a lot of his younger memories they’re hazy and vague.

-

Aaron stands outside of Nicky’s bedroom as he calls the boy that lives in Germany. He listens to them talk about him and how he’s invisible. He hears Nicky worrying that Aaron will disappear completely and it makes him feel afraid, so he leaves and goes back to his own bedroom to dig through medical books he’d gotten from his mum’s shitty boyfriends over the years. They all tried to win him over that way, but Aaron knew the gifts would be followed with beatings. He still took them, though. He wanted to become a doctor, so he stayed up all night reading them while his mother fought downstairs. He grabs a flashlight and hides under his blanket, which makes him feel a little ridiculous because no one can see him anyway, and he skims through the countless of books. Some of them are children’s books, and they tell him nothing about turning invisible. Some of them are at a more advanced level, with words he doesn’t understand without having to look their definitions up online, but even these books tell him nothing about turning invisible. Out of frustrations he throws his blanket off of him and tosses one of the heavy books at the wall. There is one book left, and as Aaron skims through it he finally finds what he is looking for.

_Although scientists have been researching what actually causes a child to turn invisible, no definitive answer has been found yet. It seems they merely disappear when frightened too often. This is most often found in abuse victims, and they rarely, if ever turn back. Scientists can not say what prompts these children to turn visible, but theories have been proposed. ___

__Aaron looks at the words, reads them over and over until they lose their meaning. They don’t know. No one knows why he turned invisible, and they definitively don’t know how to cure him. Maybe he will truly disappear, maybe one day he’ll fall asleep and never wake up. Would Nicky even be able to tell he died? Or would he just assume Aaron had ran away? The thought is so depressing that Aaron just curls up on his bed, still fully clothed and pulls the blanket over himself. He shuts his eyes tightly and wills himself to fall asleep, but he dreams of turning invisible and disappearing out of his family’s lives forever._ _

__

__-_ _

__

__Andrew lays awake on his bed, he can hear Aaron walking through his bedroom, can hear him looking for the medical books he got from Tilda’s stupid boyfriends, probably looking for a cure for his current predicament. Andrew knows there is no cure, or at least not one that doctors know of. In the foster system, Andrew had known countless of invisible children, had turned invisible himself after so many foster families that used and abused him. He had seen it as a blessing back then, because it’s a lot harder to hurt a child you cannot see. It wasn’t until he moved in with Cass Spears that he started turning visible again, that was when Andrew realised what the cure was. He never did turn fully visible while there thanks to Drake, though, that had come later. He doesn’t plan on telling Nicky just yet what it is that he has to do, he wants to know for sure that Nicky is worth sharing this secret with. He doesn’t trust Nicky and his smiles at all, he simply waits to see what’s lying behind it. If it’s less than Tilda and the foster families, he’ll count it as a victory, but he won’t know if it’s enough until he’s gotten there. For now he closes his eyes and forces himself to fall asleep. The cure is his secret for now. He’ll keep it safely hidden away until he can be sure it works. Only then will he give it to Aaron._ _

__

__-_ _

__

__Erik doesn’t actually get anymore sleep after his call with Nicky had ended, but he doesn’t mind. He calls his father at around 8 and asks if it’s okay if he visits to look for something in the attic, and his dad agrees on the condition that he stays for tea. He was supposed to work from home today, so they agree to make it dinner instead. His mind is sluggish from a lack of sleep and the severity from the call he had with Nicky. Distracting Nicky had always been an easy task. Erik always knew exactly what to say to keep Nicky from spiralling out of control, but when it came to himself he never really managed. Time ticks by way too slowly for Erik’s liking, and eventually he just closes his laptop and goes to find his jacket. Work can wait till after dinner, it’s a family matter that needs resolving._ _

__The drive to his parents place is a short one, he still lives relatively close by for now. He’ll have to move further away soon, because he was going to work for a bigger company. He’d have given anything to get that jo so moving is a small price to pay. For now he can still indulge in seeing his parents and sister as often as he can get away with, though. The house still feels as much like home as his apartment does, maybe even more so. The apartment felt more like home when Nicky was still there, waking up next to him every day, sunlight framing his face and his soft curls a mess all around his face. Nicky’s been gone for two months now, though, and Erik really ought to stop feeling like a piece of him has been ripped away._ _

__“Hey! I didn’t know you’d be visiting?” His sister, Bianca, comes out into the hallway._ _

__“Oh yeah, I need grandma’s medicine book,” Erik says as he shrugs out of his coat. He pretends not to catch the strange frown from Bianca. They all know the homemade recipes are mostly magical ones, recipe’s not often needed anymore because they’ve been either learned by heart, or replaced by more modern medicine or rewritten to be better._ _

__“What’s going on?” Bianca asks. “Is Nicky okay?”_ _

__“Nicky is fine it’s… Look, it doesn’t matter, okay. I just need it.”_ _

__Bianca doesn’t ask again, instead she takes Erik up to their attic so he can look for the little book. He knows exactly where to find it, it’s in the small box tucked all the way in the back under stacks of old photo albums of their great grandparents. The little book has many useful recipes, but as Erik flips through it he starts to lose hope fast. He doubts his grandmother had actually written something about invisibility in it,since there were no stories of anyone in his family ever turning invisible. He’s about to give up completely when a small scribble in the corner of a random page catches his eye. The writing is sloppy, it must’ve been written in one of her last few years, so it takes a while to decipher, but when he finally does he feels a bit more relaxed. It isn’t really a cure, so to speak, but it’s one step closer to fixing the problem. At the top of the corner, all that’s written down is:  
_When a child turns invisible, the best way to help is by unfrightening the child.__ _

____Erik is pretty sure he knows what it means, but he wants to talk it over with his mother before he gives Nicky the actual advice. He does remember Nicky’s own condition though, remembers Nicky’s transparent legs that one time they were sunbathing. Nicky had almost turned invisible before coming to Germany, and unfrightening for Nicky had meant showing him that it was okay to be himself. He didn’t know enough about Aaron to truly say what he needed to turn visible again, but it was at least a step in the right direction_ _ _ _

____ _ _

____-_ _ _ _

____ _ _

____Nicky doesn’t like the quiet in the house. Andrew rarely initiates conversation with Nicky first, hardly even answers him unless it’s a direction question he feels like answering. Aaron doesn’t talk at all, not even when spoken to. Two rings of the bell mean _Yes Nicky _, three mean No Nicky _, and he hasn’t yet figured out what only one means, but he has a feeling it means he startled Aaron. He doesn’t want to treat him like he’s made off glass, like he is something fragile that could break at any moment if Nicky says the wrong thing, but it’s hard not to tip toe around him. The bell is also still a bit unsettling, Nicky never knows where to look. He knows the bell is around Aaron’s neck, but it’s still where his eyes go to first. It makes him feel a little rude, to be honest. He still hasn’t heard back from Erik by the time it’s morning, he wakes up before the twins and goes to make them breakfast. He’s noticed Andrew has quite a sweet tooth, so he decided to make them pancakes for breakfast. He doesn’t really know what Aaron likes for breakfast, since he’ll just sit there and wait for the others to be done with it. Nicky had almost decided to offer Aaron to have breakfast by himself, but he didn’t want Aaron to think he didn’t want him there. He allows himself to just forget about it for a few minutes as he focuses on baking the pancakes, but he soon hears a set of footsteps coming into the kitchen.____ _ _ _

_______“Morning!” Nicky says cheerfully, he turns to see who it is and is greeted by the sight of only the ribbon and bell wrapped around Aaron’s invisible neck. He wonders why he didn’t hear the bell, but doesn’t ask. “We’re having pancakes for breakfast! I thought that would be fun.” Nicky is about to turn away, when the bell moves closer. He looks at Aaron, waiting for him to do anything else, but then it clicks. He wants to help._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“I could use some help, actually! Could you mix some more of the batter for me?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______The bell rings twice, and Nicky goes to show Aaron how to mix and make the batter for the pancakes. They work together in a comfortable silence, and Nicky makes a big enough stack of pancakes to have leftovers for tomorrow. He takes half the stack, puts it on a plate, and turns to Aaron._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“Could you carry these to the table? I’ll go and wake Andrew in the meantime.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“…. Okay,” Aaron’s soft voice whispers back. Nicky is startled for a second, but he manages to hide it. He just gives the plate to Aaron instead, and gives him a smile. “Thanks!”  
He leaves to wake Andrew up, but he has to detour to his own room just for a minute to make sure he doesn’t start crying of joy in front of the twins instead. It’s not much, but it’s a start._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______ _ _ _ _ _

_______-_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______ _ _ _ _ _

_______Aaron has started talking more over the past few days. It didn’t take long for him to trust Nicky, but Andrew still doubts if it’s actual trust or just a way to save his own skin. A connection formed out of a necessity, perhaps. It’ll take more for Andrew to actually believe he can trust Nicky fully, but he has shown that he at least wants to do all he can to help Aaron turn visible again. So, Andrew has decided to trust Nicky with the cure. He walks into the living room where Nicky is watching tv, and looks around the room for a ribbon and a bell, when he doesn’t find it he takes the remote and turns the tv off. Nicky is about to whine out a remark about Andrew being rude, Nicky’s attempt at bonding through joking around, but Andrew beats him to it._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“I know the cure,” he says._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______Nicky’s eyes widen when he realises what he means, and he sits up fully to pay attention to what Andrew has to say. He doesn’t try to get him to move on, he just waits for Andrew to continue on his own._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“Trust. Show him you’re not like Tilda. The best way to cure his invisibility, is to show you care.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______Nicky slowly nods, as he ponders the message over. Andrew is about to leave, when Nicky says something in German. Andrew’s German isn’t good enough to fully understand it, though Nicky had offered before to help him with it, so it takes a while for him to catch on fully._ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“The best cure is to unfrighten the child,” _Nicky says. “It’s- I asked Erik for help as well, that’s what he said… It makes sense now, but, how did you know?”  
Andrew turns back around to face Nicky. “I used to be invisible, too.” Then he leaves before giving Nicky the time to fully let that sink in.__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________Andrew used to be invisible, too. It should make Nicky feel horribly upset, he should feel like life was incredibly unfair.  
But he doesn’t, because if Andrew _used _to be invisible, then that means he became visible again which, in turn, means there is hope for Aaron too. It means there is a chance he can help him and that Aaron will be okay. Nicky doesn’t care what he has to do, he would do anything just to have Aaron turn visible again. He can’t fight the smile off of his face as he takes his phone to call Erik and tell him the good news___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________There’s a cure. Aaron heard Nicky and Andrew talk about the cure from out in the hallway. He couldn’t make out what the actual cure is, but just the thought of there being one is enough for Aaron. When he goes to bed that night, he thinks he might actually be smiling when Nicky comes into the room to say goodnight. He can’t actually tell, though._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________Andrew noticed the shift in Aaron’s mood immediately. He knows Aaron overheard them talking, but he pretends not to be able to tell. Aaron’s good mood brought another surprise with it, after two days of it, his feet slowly started becoming visible again. Andrew actually felt relieved, though he didn’t say so out loud. Nicky only took one look at Aaron’s transparent feet, but said nothing, probably worried he would freak Aaron out if he actually brought it up. The only thing Nicky did, was go to the store and buy Aaron a new pair of shoes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

___________Aaron stares at the new pair of shoes, sitting in their box on his bed. He knows Nicky is the one that got them for him. He gently runs his hand over them, trying to remember the last time he had an actual pair that fit him. He’s worried that taking them out of the box will upset Nicky, but he still wants to try them on, wants to believe just for a moment that they are his and only his, not for him _and _Andrew. Slowly he puts the shoes on and takes a few uncertain steps through the bedroom, when the door opens and Aaron turns to see Nicky in the door. His eyes are slightly widened in shock, but the expression is gone so quickly Aaron thinks he may have only imagined it.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Oh good! They fit you, then?” Nicky asks instead._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Uh.. Yeah,” Aaron says._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Good! I had Andrew try them on at the store, but I was still a little uncertain. I wanted to take you both shopping, but I know you’re not a big fan of it.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Aaron only nods and starts to take the shoes off again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“You don’t like them? Because I can still return them if you want?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Is Andrew okay with that?” Aaron frowns, but of course, Nicky can’t see it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Why would he be? They’re your shoes, not his. He only tried them on because I wanted to know they fit. He got his own pair as well, but I don’t have to return both.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Oh… No, they’re fine. I like them, just don’t want to wear them around the house..”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Nicky nods and smiles a bit. Aaron wonders if he’ll say anything else, but Nicky leaves shortly after that. Aaron looks at the shoes again, feeling a spark of happiness at the thought that they’re his. If these are his, then Andrew will have his own pair too. They won’t have to share their clothes anymore, like mum made them do. Andrew and Aaron will both have their own things, and Aaron can’t tell if he feels so glad for Andrew or for himself, he just knows he’s glad._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________The day after Nicky gave Aaron a pair of shoes, Aaron comes downstairs and he is visible up to the waist. Nicky wishes he could feel happy, but the sight of the baggy jeans that don’t fit Aaron at all make him feel more upset than anything. Tilda couldn’t even be bothered to buy them proper clothes, or clothes that were for themselves. Nicky decides to go shopping for the both of them, so at breakfast he casually brings it up._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“I wanted to go and get you guys some new clothes, since you have so little. You don’t have to come with, but if you can tell me what you need I can go shopping. That sound okay?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________He looks at Andrew and Aaron. It’s a little easier to look at Aaron now, because he knows he’s really there. Neither of them really answer him, so Nicky places a piece of paper and a pen in front of them to make him a list instead. He’s a bit worried about leaving the twins all alone, but they’re 16 not 6, so Nicky knows he can trust them not to burn the place down. When he finishes breakfast, he takes the empty plates to the kitchen to clean. When he comes back, there is a list on the table with what they need and style preferences. Nicky smiles, takes the note, and leaves to buy them what they need._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Aaron sits in the living room alone with Andrew. Nicky had left a little while ago and the house is completely quiet. Andrew is tearing a random old magazine apart, and Aaron is watching him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Stop that,” Andrew says, which Aaron is pretty sure this is the first time Andrew has ever directly spoken to him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Okay.” Aaron turns away and turns on the TV._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________They sit in silence for a long time, Andrew doesn’t make a move to start a conversation and Aaron isn’t entirely sure if he wants to make the move either. It’s strange to think that this complete stranger is his brother, if it weren’t for the fact that they were identical, Aaron would have never believed his mum when she told him. He sneaks another glance at Andrew, like looking at him will clear things up, like looking at him will tell him the secrets that Andrew refuses to share with him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“You eavesdropped,” Andrew says calmly. “On me and Nicky.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Aaron looks away, he feels his body go tense, preparing for a fight or to run. Andrew only watches him, his heavy gaze on Aaron makes all the hairs on his body stand up. Aaron risks looking at Andrew out of the corner of his eyes, and he sees Andrew simply shrug and turn back to the TV. Neither of them say another word until Nicky returns from the store with two full bags of clothing. He hands one of them to Aaron and the other to Andrew and tells them to go upstairs and try some of it on, because if they don’t like it he can still go back before his shift starts at Eden’s. Aaron is glad for the distraction and takes the clothes upstairs. He doesn’t try any of them on or takes them out of the bag, but when Nicky knocks on the door and asks if the clothes are alright Aaron still tells him they all fit._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

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_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Andrew looks through the clothes Nicky brought him and tries some of them on. The pants are a bit long, but Cass has taught Andrew how to take his pants in so they fit, so it won’t be a problem. Nicky put only one coloured shirt in the bag with clothes, even though Andrew wrote down he wanted only black clothes. He looks at it with disinterest and tosses it on the floor, along with the old clothes he got from Tilda._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________“Andrew?” Nicky knocks on his bedroom door. Andrew doesn’t answer, waiting for him to barge in, but Nicky knocks again. “Hey? I was wondering if the clothes fit? Are you getting changed, or can I come in?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Andrew opens the door, wearing one of the new shirts Nicky got for him. Nicky looks him over, then nods with a smile. “Looks nice! I’m glad it fits. I put one coloured shirt in it, but if you don’t want it I can return it?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Andrew shrugs and picks it up from the floor, tossing it to Nicky who catches it and hums. “Yeah, blue isn’t your colour.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Andrew ignores him in favour for grabbing the pants and looking for needles and thread. Nicky watches him with a curious look on his face, but when he realises what Andrew is planning he lets out a soft _oh _. He leaves and Andrew begins to measure the pant legs, to see how and where he has to take them in. He’s almost done with looking through all the pants when Nicky returns with a sewing machine.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“I got this old sewing machine as a gift from Erik’s grandmother, but I can’t use it. I bet you can, though. Do you want me to put it on your desk?”  
Andrew nods quietly, not because he doesn’t want to say, but because he is a little at loss for words. When Nicky leaves, Andrew walks over to the sewing machine to carefully inspect it. It’s an older model, but it’s in a great state. Nicky even put a box filled with thread and needles next to it. Andrew almost feels a little happy, but he forces the feeling away. There’s no use starting to feel comfortable around Nicky, Andrew knows he’ll show his true colours one day or another_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Aaron wakes up the following day and his torso is visible. He should feel happy, but he’s afraid. He doesn’t want this to go wrong, he’s too scared that getting up will ruin things and he’ll disappear.  
So he stays in bed the entire day._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Andrew doesn’t let Nicky get anywhere near Aaron’s room today, so Nicky gives all the plates with food he makes for Aaron to Andrew instead. Andrew won’t tell Nicky what’s wrong with Aaron, so Nicky can only imagine. He’s worried he ruined things and Aaron is turning invisible again. That night when the twins are asleep, Nicky calls Erik and cries on the phone until he falls asleep._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

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_______________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

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_______________Aaron wakes up the following day, expecting himself to be invisible again, but when he looks into the mirror he sees nothing’s changed. His torso is still visible, and he runs a shaky transparent hand over his skin._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Oh…” He turns around to get changed. He can’t stand to look at his reflection anymore, it just makes him more afraid. He grabs some of the clothes Nicky had bought for him, puts them on and goes downstairs. Nicky is busy making breakfast again, but stops when Aaron goes to stand next to him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Hey,” Nicky says. “Good to see you.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Aaron rolls his eyes, but Nicky, obviously, doesn’t see, so he lets out a loud sigh instead. “That’s a dumb joke.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“It is. It’s still kinda funny, though.” Nicky grins at him, and Aaron turns around to sit at the dining table. He’s starting to think that just maybe, it’ll really be okay._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

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_______________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Nicky feels a sense of pride as he sees Aaron’s transparent arms. Nicky knows he’s doing something good, if Aaron has started to show progress so quickly. He can only hope things stay this way, that he won’t fuck up and ruin Aaron more. Erik and him talk about that a lot at night, and Erik always tell him it’s impossible for Nicky to do such a thing. Tonight is no different, of course._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“What if I’m like my dad?” Nicky whispers through the phone._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“You won’t be, you’re so much better than he will ever be,” Erik whispers back._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________There is really no reason for them to be whispering, they’re alone, but it kind of makes them feel like they’re back together in their apartment, sharing a bed, holding each other tightly. A pillow can only replace the feeling of holding the other, but with the phone calls it’s a little easier to imagine they aren’t alone._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“I don’t want him to get hurt… I don’t want either of them to get hurt.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“You won’t hurt them, sweetheart. You’re too kind to ever do such a thing. You’re a good person, Nicky.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“But I-“_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Nah, that’s not true.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Nicky laughs and complains that Erik doesn’t even know what he was about to say, but Erik just shushes him. The conversation flows into something easier after that, with more laughter and jokes and saying they love each other. It makes Nicky feel at ease when he falls asleep later._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Aaron’s head won’t turn visible. It’s frustrating, and Aaron has stopped looking into the mirror in the morning to make sure it’s there. It’s been a week already, since his torso and arms began to turn visible, but his head just won’t come around. Aaron has started taking his frustration out on those around him, getting angry at Nicky whenever he makes jokes. The other day he even stormed away angrily. Neither Andrew or Nicky ever tell him to stop doing it, but Andrew does send him dirty looks whenever Nicky isn’t watching.  
Nicky is currently making jokes again, and it just annoys Aaron for no reason at all. He just wants him to shut up, want everyone to just go away and leave him alone. He can feel his frustration building up, needs a way to just let it all out, and opts for getting mad at Nicky again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Can you shut the fuck up for once? Your jokes aren’t funny, Nicky,” he snaps._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Nicky looks surprised, but then he smiles and shrugs. “Your loss!” Nicky says with a chuckle, as he gets up from the kitchen table to clean his plates. The moment he turns his back on them, Andrew turns to send a glare at Aaron. He doesn’t understand what Andrew is trying to accomplish, he only knows it aids in pissing him off more._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Oh fuck off, Andrew! You don’t even like or trust Nicky!” Aaron snaps. He finally regrets his behaviour though, because after he says it, Nicky drops the forks he’s holding into the sink._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Oh! My bad,” Nicky says, forcing his voice to be cheerful. He picks them back up and cleans them, as if nothing is wrong, but Aaron can see the tense set to his shoulders. Andrew looks at Aaron the entire time, waiting for him to just say or do something, but Aaron doesn’t know what he should say._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“I’m going to do laundry, can you two clean your plates when you’re done?” Nicky turns to them, the smile on his face doesn’t quite reach his eyes. Aaron can only nod quietly, he doesn’t know what to say or do to apologise to Nicky. He can only watch him walk away without another word._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Good job,” Andrew says, the moment Nicky is gone._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“I didn’t-“ Aaron stops, because he did say it to hurt the both of them._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Andrew doesn’t say a single word, only fixes his heavy gaze on Aaron. Finally he gets up and walks off, leaving Aaron alone with only the dirty dishes for company. He picks them up and cleans them, trying to think of how to apologise to Nicky. His mind comes up blank, so he goes to sit in the backyard. He hardly ever goes out, because he worries the neighbours will see him and blame Nicky for his invisibility, but he can hardly bring himself to care today. The sun is still comfortably warm and Aaron sits on one of the lawn chairs and closes his eyes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Aaron wakes up when the door to the backyard is slammed shut. He looks around confused, not even remembering falling asleep, when his eyes fall on Andrew. He’s sitting on the floor close to the door, lighting a cigarette without a word._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“You can’t smoke,” Aaron says._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Andrew only takes a drag from his cigarette, slowly blowing out the smoke into the afternoon sky._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“He’s trying to help. I wouldn’t have told him how if I didn’t trust him,” Andrew says after a few minutes of silence._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Aaron doesn’t answer him, he just turns to watch the sun instead._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________“Have you ever considered we’re only trying to fucking help you? Stop being such an asshole and fucking let us, dickhead,” Andrew says, before tossing his cigarette away and going back inside._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________Aaron watches him go, knows he should feel angry because of how Andrew worded it, but it’s the first time Andrew has directly spoken to him since the accident and Aaron feels… kind of happy about it. Things will get better, he’ll get the brother he hoped he would. His head will come back and he won’t disappear. He’s got some hope back._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______________It isn’t until later that evening that Aaron actually apologizes to Nicky, and it isn’t until the following day that he finally wakes up with his head finally visible again. At the sight of it Aaron feels an immense relief flood over him, he doesn’t have to worry about turning invisible ever again. Andrew was right, the people he’s with right now _do _care and they do want to help him. He can go downstairs and finally face his family again.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> This is pretty much an apology fanfic for Aaron because of another fanfic I'm working on (;  
> Anyway! If you liked this, maybe say hi to me on my tumblr [ over here](https://eloquent-apollo.tumblr.com)?


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